"-Ware"

"Urban Computing" is defined by Kingberg, Chalmers and Paulos as "the integration of computing, sensing, and actuation technologies into everyday urban settings and lifestyles".

That picture taken last week in Geneva appears to me as strikingly evocative of "urban computing". The suffix "-ware" added on top of a physical layer indeed reflects how urban computing is not just about digital bits but also raw, messy and dirty material in the city of the near future. That said, it's also interesting as the suffix "-ware" is used in a large variety of forms, sometimes without any reference to its origin (manufactured article of a specified type, made with particular substance).